Hog head coating apparatus



June 5, 1956 o. HEDSTROM 2,748,421

HOG HEAD COATING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 9, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l @B I N VEN TOR;

GM 6. K7 4? A TTOR1VEY.

o. HEDSTROM 2,748,421

HOG HEAD COATING APPARATUS June 5, 1956 2 Shee s-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 9, 1950 ATTORNEY United States Patent O 2,748,421 HOG HEAD COATING APPARATUS Otto Hedstrom, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Armour and Company, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Illinois Application December 9, 1950, Serial N o. 2%,061 4 Claims. (Cl. 17-1) My invention relates to an apparatus for the de-hairing of hogs. More particularly my invention relates to an apparatus for the continuous de-hairing of hogs by the application of a coating of an adhesive or wax-like material. Still more particularly my invention relates to an apparatus for coating the heads of hogs of varying sizes with a material such as a rosin wax.

It has been suggested that an adhesive material such as a rosin wax be used to remove the hair from the hide of hog carcasses by applying a coating of the rosin wax to the hide, allowing the applied wax to solidify, and then removing the solidified wax together with the embedded hair. However, present de-hairing procedures such as scraping have been found to be commercially more desirable for de-hairing the entire hog than the suggested wax process. This is true because scraping and similar procedures remove the hair on the relatively smooth portions of the hog hide rather easily. Scraping methods, however, are unsatisfactory in removing the hair from the irregular portions of the hide on the head of the hog where the hair tends to be thicker and stilfer. Therefore, it has been desired to find a means for coating only the heads of hogs with an adhesive material.

In large and modern packing houses, the processing of hogs is carried out on an assembly line basis. In the early processing stages in which the hog carcass is cleaned and de-haired prior to removing the skin therefrom, it has been found convenient to suspend the hog by its feet from a hanger attached to a carrier traveling on an overhead conveyor track. In this practice the hogs are pulled along at a uniform rate of speed and at a spaced distance from each other past various processing stations. The operations performed on the hogs must therefore be carried out so as to allow the hogs to continue traveling during the process operation. Applicant was therefore faced with the problem of how to devise an apparatus which would coat the heads of hogs with a material such as a rosin wax without stopping the conveyor or changing the position of the hogs relative to the conveyor.

In attempting to produce an apparatus for the continuous coating of hog heads to be used in conjunction with a conveyor system, applicant discovered that a major difiiculty presented was that the hogs were of varying lengths. This size variation would normally be expected to be at least 30 to 40 inches dili'erence in the length of hogs being processed. Since hogs traveling on the conveyor cannot be conveniently classified as to length, the size variation from one hog to the next is an unknown quantity except, for the fact that it is predictable that this variation will probably not exceed a certain maximum amount.

It is therefore an object of my invention to provide an apparatus for coating the hides of hogs with an adhesive material while the hogs are traveling on an overhead conveyor without the necessity for stopping the conveyor or changing the position of the hogs in respect thereto. It is a further object of my invention to provide a coating apparatus for de-hain'ng the heads of hogs of varying lengths. It is another object of my invention to provide control means for starting the elevation of the, wax con- "Ice tainer at the proper moment, and for stopping the rise of the container when the head of the hog has been immersed in the wax. It is a still further object of my inven-- tion to provide a wax container which is continually re-' filled from a reservoir tank in which the coating material is kept in a heated condition, and to provide a container of such a shape that the hog can continue traveling along the conveyor while its lower portion is being coated by dipping it into the container.

In one embodiment of my invention, the above objects can be substantially accomplished by providing a container or bucket attached to an elevator mechanism which will cause the container to be raised upwardly from within a storage tank containing the adhesive material. I have further discovered that the rise of the bucket can be adjusted to hogs of varying lengths by providing a control means for stopping the rise of the container when the container begins to lift the hog by the pressing of the hogs nose against the bottom thereof. Such a stopping control responsive to the lifting of the hog by the rising container can be conveniently actuated by providing a break in the chain or other flexible lift member which is opened for a limited distance by the increased tension produced when the hog begins to be lifted. The container may be elongated so as to have a length somewhat greater than the distance of travel of the hog on the conveyor from its first contact witl the material in the bucket until itis cleared by the lowering of the bucket, and the bucket may be provided with trapdoors which serve as butterfly valves to fill the bucket when it is lowered into the storage tank.

My invention is illustrated in a specific embodiment in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of my coating apparatus showing a hog traveling on an overhead conveyor as it approaches the coating apparatus; Fig. 2, a schematic view of the elevator mechanism and the various control mechanisms for actuating the air cylinder; Fig. 3, an enlarged detailview partly in section of the control actuating device for stopping the rise of the container when it begins to lift the hog, as shown in relation to the rest of the apparatus in Figs. 1 and 2; and Fig. 4, an enlarged perspective cut-away view of the coating material container having trapdoors in the bottom thereof to serve as butterfly valves.

Looking first at Fig. 1, the structure shown can be broken down into three units. The letter H represents a hog which is traveling on an overhead conveyor system C, andisapproaching my new coating apparatus indicated by the letter D.

It will be noted that hog H is suspended by means of hanger 1 having hog hooks 1a embedded in the legs of hog H. Carrier 2 is provided with carrier hook 2a which is secured through a hole 1b in hanger 1. Carrier hook 2a is pivotally supported by bracket arm 2b, which is hung from roller 20. Roller 20 rides on track 3, which is supported by arms 4 from track support 5 and has conveyor chain 6 engaging an upward extension 2d of carrier arm 211. Other hogs are carried at spaced distances along conveyor C by means of conveyor chain 6, and will thus be brought successively to the position now occupied by hog H in which it is approaching the coating apparatus D.

My coating apparatus has a vat or storage tank 7 provided with a supply pipe 8 and heating coils 9. Tank 7, when my apparatus is in use, would be filled with an adhesive material in melted condition which will solidify to form a coating on the hog hide, and then upon being removedwill also remove the hair from the hog hide. Various wax-like materials are suitable for use in such a de-hairing operation, and I have found that rosin waxes are especially desirable.

Bucket in its lowermost position as shown in Fig. l, rests within tank 7 and thus would be submerged below the surface of the melted wax contained in tank 7. Iprefer to providethe bottomof. container 10 with; trapdoors 11 as shown in- Fig, 4. Trapdoor-s, 11 are hinged so as to swinginwardly. and open circular ports. 12in the bottom of bucket 10. Thus, whc11 bucket.10 is lowered into tank 7- doorsll open inwardly tov replenish the supply of wax-like material: in container 10, while upon the lifting of bucket 10 doors 11 seat in.ports. 12; and holdthe liquid wax within, container 10 while it is being elevated. Thus, trapdoors 11.. function as butterfly valvesfor filling bucket 10. Iv also prefer to elongate bucket 10 in order to compensate. for. the-distance which hog H will travel along the conveyor. C while the head is being coated with the wax.

I prefer to position tank 7 on base 13, and to have base 13extend laterally beyond one side of tank 7. The projecting section of base 13 can then be used to provide a rigid foundation for rack or frame 14..which serves to support the elevator mechanism for bucket-10.

Frame 14. can conveniently be constructed, as in the illustration given, using channel members as cornerposts. Rear posts 15 and front posts 16 are secured in an upright position. to form the four corners of. frame 14. Ifv desired, gusset plates 66 can be attached to the bottom of posts 15 and 16 to assist in securing posts 15 and 16 to base 13, and in maintaining themin avertical position. In the illustration given, front posts. 16 are somewhat higher than rear posts 15 to provide additional space in front for the elevator mechanism. Side braces 17 are extended laterally. from rear posts- 15 to rigidly connect with front posts 16. A rear bracing member 18 is provided at the top between rear posts 15 and a front bracing member 19 is provided at the top between front posts 16. In the lower portion of frame 14, is secured an upper platform 20 and a lower platform 21. The structure thus assembled comprises the frame on which the elevator mechanism for bucket 10 is mounted. This mechanism will now be described.

I have said that channel members can advantageously, be used to form the cornerposts of frame 14. The use of channel members turned inwardly to faceeach other is especially desirable for forming front posts 16. Within the facing channels thus provided an elevator or carriage 22can be secured sothat it can be raised andlowered within the facing tracks 23 in front channels,1 6, In the illustration given, carriage 22 is formed fromhorizontal tu bes 24 connected by vertical plates 25. Horiz ont al tubes 2 4.are equipped with rollers 26 on each end, so that rollers 26 can be guided withintracks 23 when carriage 22 is raised or lowered.

To the front of carriage 24, and rnore particularly to vertical plates 25, I secure support brackets 27 which extend outwardly and downwardly to their attachm nt with the side and bottom of bucket 10. If desired, additional bracing, such as brace 28, can be provided to strengthen support brackets 27.

At the top of frame 14 near the center of side braces. 17, Isecure wheel support blocks .29 having aligned holes 30 therein. Within holes 30 I rotatably secure a wheel rod 31 turning in bearings 32. On wheelrod 31 I rigidlysecure, such as by grooves or pins, largesprocket wheel 33 and a small sprocket wheel 34. One end of. a link chain 35 is rigidly secured to the periphery of large sprocket wheel 33 so that chain 35 will engage the-teeth of sprocket wheel 33, and be wrapped around the-pe riphery of-wheel 33 when it is rotated counterclockwise. Thelower; end of chain- 35 is then ,attachedtothetnpper P t-: f, q a ire e. 22 1 b i. ed.byh t dins q fiha n v 5. 1 o ket h el On upperplatform 20 .is located cylinder 36 extending. upwardly, Withincylinder 36 I providea conventional ealedpist n havin p ton; d. 7- extending. upward y through a packed opening in the; top, of cylinder; 36..

Cylinder 36 is provided with port 38 at the top and port 39 at the bottom. Since this cylinder piston and port structure are conventional and well known in the art, it is believed that further discussion of this structure is unnecessary.

Piston rod 37 is equipped with collar 40 at its upper end which is somewhat larger than rod 37. To collar 40 is secured link chain 41 which is attached to the periphery of small sprocket wheel 34 in the same man? ner that chain 35 was attached tolarge sprocket wheel 33.

However, chain 41 is attached to wheel 34 so that it winds or wraps about wheel 34 when wheel 34 is rotated in a clockwise direction. Thus, while chain 35 is being wound, chain 41 is being unwound. It will be apparent that this chain and wheel combination is simply a meansfor transmitting the force produced on piston rod 37 within cylinder 36 to carriage 22 in order to lift bucket 10.

I have found it advantageous to use a two to one ratio between the circumferences of large sprocket wheel 33 and small sprocket wheel 34. Thus, the length of chain wrapping and unwrapping about the large sprocket wheel is approximately twice that wrappping and unwrapping about the small sprocket wheel. The exact lengths of chains35 and 41 can easily be determined relative to the size variation in the hogs being processed. However, I have found that a wrap of 60 inches for chain 35 corresponding to a wrap of 30 inches for chain 41 is satisfactory in providing for size variation normally encountered in packing house operations.

On lower platform 21, I locate master valve 42 to control the operation of the piston in cylinder 36. Pipe 43 is connected between upper port 38 and master valve 42. Pipe 44 is connected to lower port 39 and vented to the atmosphere. A primary pilot valve 45 is secured on bracket arm 46 adjacent to track 3 of conveyor C. Primary pilot valve 45 is positioned sufficiently close to track 3 so that it will be actuated by contact with carrier 2 as it passes on track 3. Pilot valve 45 is supplied with compressed air and has a pipe connection 47 to master valve 42in order that master valve 42 can be positioned or actuated by pilot valve 45. Thus connected, pilot valve 45-serves to start the raising of bucket 10 by the elevator mechanism just as hog H reaches a position on conveyor C at which its head can be coated by the wax in bucket 10. The method of connecting pilot valve 45 to master valve 42 is seen best in Fig. 2.

In the illustration given, I provide a control means for stopping the elevation of bucket 10 when the nose of hog H strikes the bottom of bucket 11 and begins to be lifted thereby. To accomplish this result I provide a break between the links of chain 35 at 48. This break or gap in chain 35 is bridged by members maintained together by a spring, but capable of opening up for a limited distance when the tension on chain 35 is greatly increased by the lifting of hog H. These members will now be described in detail.

Looking especially at Fig. 3,- which shows an enlarged viewof the spring maintained bridging members atpoint 48in Figs. 1 and 2, it can be seen that chain 35 is linked at point 48'by laterally extending arms 49 and 50. Arms 49' and 50'are preferably aligned and superimposed so that they extend horizontally from chain 35 the same distance. The outer ends of upper arm 49-and lower arm 50 are pivotally. secured together. In the illustration given, this is done by providing downwardly extending flanges 51- at the end of upper arm 49 to seat ona tongue projection 52 of lower arm 51 Pivot pin 53'is secured throughflanges 51 and tongue 52 to provide for the opening of arms 49 and 5d toform a V when chain 35 is-parted' at point 48;

In. the illustration given, bolt 54 isv placed through aligned holes 55 and 56 respectivelyin arms50-and 49 so.- as. to project upwardly. from upper arm 49. A compression. spring 57. is. coiled around" the upwardly pro jecting portion of bolt 54' so that it rests on top of upper arm 49. A sleeve or socket 58 having a closed upper end 59 with a hole therein corresponding to the size of the shank of bolt 54 is placed on bolt 54 above spring 57. Sleeve 58 is somewhat shorter than spring 57 in order that spring 57 must be compressed before the lower edges of sleeve 58 strike the top of upper arm 49, and thereby prevent further separation of arms 49 and 50. Sleeve 59 and spring 57 can conveniently be held on bolt 54 by means of nut 60. While I prefer to have bolt 60 held loosely within bolt holes 55 and 56, it will be apparent that bolt 55 can be rigidly fastened to lower arm 50, since the arms separate primarily by the sliding of hole 56 over the shank of bolt 54. Also, it will be apparent that a rod can be used in place of bolt 54, and that sleeve 58 can be variously modified while still operating to check the opening of arms 49 and 50.

Secondary pilot valve 61 is supported below lower arm 50 by means of strap or bracket support 62. Bracket support 62 extends upwardly on both sides of arms 49 and 50 and is rigidly secured to upper arm 49. It will be noted that bracket support 62 supports secondary pilot valve 61 at a distance below the bottom surface of arm 50 which is slightly less than the distance between the lower ends of sleeve 58 and the top of arm 49. This spacing of valve 61 allows it to be operated by the opening of arms 49 and 50, but prevents it from being damaged by the arms opening too far. In other words, valve 61 will be depressed far enough to actuate it, but not sufiiciently far to damage it before the lower ends of sleeve 58 limit the further opening of arms 49 and 50.

It will be apparent that the relative position of valve 61 and spring 57 together with sleeve 58 can be changed without departing from the method of operation just described. Specifically, the relative position of the valve and spring means can be reversed without departing from my invention. Pilot valve 61 is connected to pipe 64 which extends to master valve 42 by means of flexible tubing 63, as seen best in Fig. 2. Also, pilot valve 61 is supplied with compressed air.

I also provide a secondary pilot valve 65 which is secured on bracket arm 66 which is above the upper end of cylinder 36. Pilot valve 65 is located sufiiciently close to piston rod 37 that it will be actuated by collar 40 when it reaches an adjacent position. The purpose of second ary pilot valve 65 is to stop the raising of bucket when chain 41 is completely unwound. Pilot valve 65 is also preferably connected to master valve 42 by means of pipe 64, and is supplied with compressed air.

If desired, a solenoid valve 67 can be provided in pipe 47 to close pipe 47 whenever the conveyor C should stop with carrier 2 contacting valve 45. Otherwise, if the conveyor C stopped with a carrier in actuating position for valve 45, secondary pilot valve 65 would not be effective in stopping the elevation of bucket 10, and the apparatus would be damaged. Another solenoid valve 67a is provided to release the air already in pipe 47.

Operation Conveyor C as shown in Fig 1 carries hogs such as hog H at spaced distances apart and at a relatively slow but continuous rate of travel. These hogs are generally carried as shown in Fig. 1 suspended by their feet with the heads hanging downwardly. As previously discussed, these hogs are of varying lengths and normally differ in lengths by as much as 30 to 40 inches. From the following description, however, it will be seen that my coating apparatus automatically adjusts to such variations in the length of hogs, and therefore its operation can typically be described in relationship to hog H shown in Fig. l.

' In Fig. 1' hog H is traveling in the direction of the arrow, that is, it is approaching coating apparatus D. On reaching a point adjacent primary pilot valve 45, carrier 2 will actuate primary pilot valve 45 by depressing a contact member. This depression shifts the passages inside of pilot valve 45 so as to cause compressed air to pass through valve 45 to master valve 42, and thus align the passages within master valve 42 to introduce compressed air into the top of cylinder 36 by pipe 43 through port 38-.

The compressed air thus introduced into the top of cylinder 36 causes the piston attached to rod 37 to move downwardly from the position shown in Fig. 1. This causes chain 41 to unwind from small sprocket wheel 34 while rotating sprocket wheel 34 in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 1. The rotation of wheel 34 is transmitted by shaft 31 to large sprocket wheel 33, causing chain 35 to be wound about sprocket wheel 33. The wrapping of chain 35 raises carriage 22 and thus bucket 10 which is rigidly securedthereto.

Since tank 7 is filled with an adhesive material such as rosin wax which is heated to a liquid condition by steam coils 9, bucket 10 is filled with the Wax when it starts upwardly.

The speed with which bucket 10 is lifted is timed in relation to the speed of movement of the conveyor C so that the nose of hog H is just inside of the end of bucket 16 when it reaches an elevation at which the rosin wax within bucket 10 will strike the nose of hog H. Bucket 10 then continues to rise'while hog H continues to travel until the nose of hog H strikes the bottom of bucket 10. At this point, bucket 10 begins to exert a lifting force on hog H and the weight of hog H thereby greatly increases the tension on chain 35. This greatly increased tension compresses spring 57 which is responsive to the lifting force, thereby permitting chain 35 to separate at point 48 with the opening of arms 49 and 50. After arms 49 and 50 have opened a short distance, the lower surface of arm 50 depresses an operating member of secondary pilot valve 61. This causes the passages to be aligned within valve 61 so that compressed air passes through valve 61 to master valve 42 to realign the passage of master valve 42 to stop the introduction of compressed air at the top of cylinder 36. If desired, compressed air can be introduced by this shifting of master valve 42 through pipe 44 into the bottom of cylin der 36 through port 39. This is not required, however, since carriage 22 and bucket 10 have sufficient weight to cause chain 35 to unwind Without the use of compressed air on the lower side of the piston within cylinder 36.

It should be noted that sleeve 58 will check the opening of arms 49 and 50 before they open sufiiciently wide to damage valve 61.

If for any reason valve 45 is actuated when no hog is adjacent the coating apparatus, bucket 10 will be raised until collar 40 on piston rod 37 depresses the operating member of secondary pilot valve 65. This will occur at a point at which chain 41 is nearly unwound from small sprocket Wheel 34, and will thus prevent damage to the apparatus by a continued force exerted by the piston within cylinder 36 after chain 41 has completely unwound. The operation of pilot valve 65 is the same as that of pilot valves 45 and 61 which has been previously described.

In case the conveyor C stops with a carrier 2 depressing the actuating member of valve 45 the apparatus is protected by solenoid valve 67, which is operated when the electric current which causes chain 6 to be pulled along is cut off. Solenoid valve 67 then closes pipe 47 and prevents valve 45 from operating master valve 42. Thus, secondary pilot valve 65 will be effective in checking the lifting of bucket 10, since solenoid valve 67a opens to release the air in pipe 47.

The pilot valves and master cylinders which have been referred to in this application are of Well-known construction, and therefore it is believed that it is not necessary to further describe their method of operation. Also, it will be apparent that other control devices could be utilized in place of a compressed air control system.

The striking ofthenose of the-hog-against thebottom of bucketand the consequent operation of pilot valve 61 is timed so that the bucket will be lowered sutiiciently to allow the nose of the hog to clear the end of the bucket as it passes beyond the dipping apparatus. Bucket It) is then lowered, either by gravity or by compressed air, into tank 7. When the bottom of bucket-1t strikes the surface of the melted adhesive material within tank 7 trapdoors 11 open inwardly to admit the wax to bucket 10 while it is being lowered into tank 7. When bucket 10 reaches its lowermost position and stops, doors 11 close and bucket 10 is then ready to be lifted for the coating of the next hog on the conveyor.

If desired, pipes 42 and 44 can be equipped with the valve arrangement shown in Fig. 2. The purpose of this valve arrangement is to throttle the airinto the top and bottom of cylinder 36, while allowing the air to be freely expelled. This throttling action prevents bucket 10 from being either raised or lowered too rapidly. To accomplish this result, pipe 43'is equipped with a needle valve 43a and a check valve 43b adapted to open for air inlet and close for air outlet. Another check valve 430 is located in a by-pass pipe around valves 43a and 43b, and adapted to open for air outlet and to close for air inlet. Similarly, pipe 44 is equipped with needle valve 44a and check valve 44b which opens for inflow and closes for outflow. Valves 44a and 44b are by-passed for outflow through check valve 440.

While in the foregoing specification I have described a specific embodiment of my coating apparatus for purpose of illustration, various modifications can be made and will readily occur to those skilled in the art Without departing from the spirit ofvmy invention.

I claim:

1. In an apparatus for coating a portion of an object with a liquid material, means for supporting the object from its upper end portion with its lower end portion hanging downwardly, an open-topped container for holding said liquid material positioned beneath said supporting means and dimensioned to receive the lower end portion of said object, an. elevator mechanism positioned adjacent said container and extending upwardly therefrom toward said supporting means to a point spaced above the lower portion of said object, said container being mounted on said elevator mechanism, said elevator mechanism being operative to lift said container from. a position beneath said object to a position above the lower portion thereof and being arranged so that during its upward movement the lower portion of said object will be received in. said container and engaged thereby, and

means operatively associated with said elevator mechanism for automatically controlling its movements and thereby the movements of said container between said positions, said control means including force-responsive means automatically stopping the upward movement of said elevator mechanism and: thereby the rise of. said container when said container begins to lift said object by engaging the lower portion thereof, said automatic stopping means being actuated by. the force exerted on said container when said container engages andbegins to lift said object.

2. In an apparatus for continuously coating the heads of hog carcasses with an adhesive material employed in the removal of hair therefrom, an overhead conveyor for supporting hog carcasses with their heads hanging downwardly and being operative to intermittently position at least one hog carcass above a coating station, an opentopped container for holding saidadhesive material posit tioned beneath said coating station and dimensioned to receive the headof said hog, anelevator. mechanism positioned adjacent said container and extending upwardly therefrom toward said conveyor to a point spaced above the head of said hog, said container being mounted on said elevator mechanism, said elevator. mechanism being operative to lift. said: container from a position be said elevator mechanism for automatically controllingv its. movements and therebyv the movements of .said container between said positions, said control means including force-responsivev means stopping the upward movement of said elevator mechanism and thereby the rise of said container. when said container begins to lift said hogby engaging the head thereof, said automatic stopping means being actuated by the force exerted on said container when said container engages and begins to lift said hog, whereby said adhesivematerial can be applied only to the head portions of hogs even though said hogs vary. widely. in length.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 in which said elevator mechanism includes an elongated tension member. for applying lifting force to said container, said elongated tension member having a break therein capable of opening for a limiteddistance when a substantially greater tension is exerted on said member than that produced by the weight of said container and adhesive material therein, said tension member separating at said break when said container engages and begins to-lift said hog, and said automatic stopping means being responsive to the separating of said tension member.

4. In an apparatus for coating the heads of hog carcasses of varying lengths with an adhesive material employed in the removal of hair therefrom, an open-topped tank, for holding said'adhesive materiahmeans for'heating the adhesive material insaid tank to keep it in liquid condition, an elevator mechanism positioned adjacent' said tank and extendingupwardly abovesaidtank, an elongat ed bucket carriedby said elevator mechanism, said elevator mechanism being operative to lift said bucket from a point within the tank to an elevated point above the tank and to return the bucket from said elevated point to saidpoint within the tank, said bucket having trapdoors in the bottom thereof operating as butterfly valves for filling the bucket with adhesivematerial when it is returned to said position within saidtank, an overhead conveyor extending over said tank at a spaced distance thereabove and adapted to support a hog carcass with its head hang ing downwardly above said bucket, the longitudinal axis of said bucket being aligned with the line of travel of said conveyor across said tank, said bucket being dimensioned and arranged to receive the head of said hog during its upward movement, and means operatively associated with said elevator mechanism for automatically controlling its movements and thereby the movements of said bucket between said positions, said control means including means automatically stopping the upward movement of saidelevator mechanism and thereby the rise. of said-bucket when said bucket begins to lift said hog by engaging the head thereof, said automatic stopping means being actuated by the force exerted on said bucketwhen said bucket engages and begins to lift said hog.

References Cited in the file of thispatent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,422,217 MacLaurin July 11, 1922 1,455,585 Griffith May 15, 1923 1,977,542 Bruce Oct. 16, 1934 2,100,299 Tobin Nov. 23, 1937 2,236,605 Ozouf Apr. 1, 1941 2,342,598 Ozouf Feb. 22, 1944 2,358,043 Barker Sept. 12, 1944 2,445,228 Le Tourneau July 13; 1948 2,508,200 Tarlton May 16, 1950 2,573,997 Souza Nov. 6, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 916,862 France Aug. 26, 1946 

